Apathetic babus are the bane of RTI Act

A study carried out by the Public Cause Research Foundation ( PCRF) - an NGO - has brought out several flaws in the mechanism for obtaining information under the Right to Information ( RTI) Act.
PCRF - which recently issued its interim report after scrutinising about 6500 orders of the Pun

A study carried out by the Public Cause Research Foundation ( PCRF) - an NGO - has brought out several flaws in the mechanism for obtaining information under the Right to Information ( RTI) Act.

PCRF - which recently issued its interim report after scrutinising about 6500 orders of the Punjab Central Information Commission ( CIC) - discovered that the authorities did not facilitate the flow of information to the public.

PCRF examined the appeals taken up for hearing by different information officers at Punjab CIC against Public Information Officers ( PIOs) between April 2009 and March 2010. They found that the authorities were lenient towards PIOs and penalised only 97 of them for blocking information demanded by the public.

Under the RTI Act, an information commissioner should issue a show cause notice to the PIO for his failure to provide information.

He can impose or drop penalty after conducting a hearing on the notice. The proceeding would be recorded in an order.

But, in Punjab, the information commissioners have withdrawn showcause notices issued to PIOs.

They observed that " the information has now been provided" and there was no need to penaltise the PIOs.

The activists are anguished that Punjab chief information commissioner R. I. Singh - who deals with cases relating to personnel and police departments - did not impose penalty on any PIO though he dealt with 357 cases in one year. These cases involved the denial or delay in providing information to people.

The study also found that PIOs have resorted to a new method for evading punitive action. They tender an unconditional apology for not adhering to the provisions of the act and get scot- free. There have been about 300 instances when the information commissioner issued show cause notices to the PIOs but closed the cases before any decision on them.

The purpose and spirit the act was completely defeated since a large number of appeals were closed without ensuring the supply of information to the appellants.

Over 340 such cases have come under the scrutiny of PCRF. While several appellants got the information, some were denied it after the PIOs submitted that the related files were not traceable. The information commissioners ordered the PIOs to file an FIR in 28 cases and did not initiate any action in two dozen cases.

The NGO also stumbled upon the instances where the commissioners closed the cases by questioning the motive of the information seekers. The law lays down that an applicant seeking information shall not be required to give reasons for his request.

Such instances have also irritated RTI activists in Punjab.

Recently several activists protested against the functioning of the CIC. H. C. Arora, state president, RTI Activists Federation had sent a charter of demands to the Punjab chief minister Parkash Singh Badal alleging that former bureaucrats and IPS officers appointed as commissioners have a " biased and closed mind against the appellants." In a separate representation to R. I. Singh, the activists had demanded the withdrawal of duties from an information commissioner since several activists had lodged complaints against her for " misbehaving" with them and passing " arbitrary orders." The federation alleged that the commission had a soft corner for personnel and the police department - both " notorious" for harassing RTI applicants and blocking information.

The commission however defended its functioning claiming that the decisions were fair and pro- public. The issue of nonimposition of penalty was a quasijudicial one and not the prerogative of the public. The RTI Act had the provision for redressing the grievances against the commission.

The public have the option of approaching the governor if it was dissatisfied with the commission', stated the state CIC R. I. Singh. The commission never closes cases without ensuring the supply of information, he claimed.

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